And where do you live? How old is your neighborhood.
My mothers neighborhood in a very nice area of Carmichael, CA (a prime Sacramento suburb) is immune to the housing bubble and crash because of the stability and income of the upscale residents. Their home prices soared and collapsed like the rest of Sacramento, but they were not affected because they could all afford their homes and because there is constant demand for homes in that beautiful, old, stable, quiet, expensive, crime free neighborhood. It is unique in that respect.
So, is your neighborhood like Santa Anna or is it like Pacific Heights in San Francisco?
Where do you live and what is your neighborhood like? Did it ever have a rash of foreclosures?
I live on the farthest southern part of Riverside County. We border with San Diego county. The prices here have soared and collapsed too. Our community is 8 years old and has incredible amenities like a mini Olympic sized community pool, golf (for a fee) and a very strong HOA that can be a pain in the rump, but they keep everyone in line with the bylaws. Our community hasn’t seen the dead lawns for the most part because the HOA could fine or sue you for not keeping up your property. We have had our share of depreciation because of the overall market in the area etc. but I have noticed a much slower rate of depreciation in our particular community in the last 6 months and that may because of supply and demand. The repos that occurred have worked or are working their way through the system, but the great majority of the homeowners are holding onto their homes. This creates a supply issue for those interested in buying here.
I’m not trying to paint a rosy picture but for those of us not mortgaged and refied up to our eyeballs, we can wade this out to the other side. I do believe it’s possible prices could go down another 5-10% but if you are in it for the long haul, you can wait it out.